Minister of Foreign Affairs, Oana Toiu, had a meeting on Thursday with the Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, who is visiting Bucharest, on which occasion they discussed the security of the Eastern Flank and the Black Sea region, air defense and the way in which NATO responds to drone incidents in the airspace of allied states, including Romania.

According to a release sent by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Admiral Dragone appreciated that Romania remains a reliable ally within NATO and recalled Romania's contribution to missions under NATO command, the modernization of the armed forces and the active role played on the Eastern Flank. At the same time, the NATO official reconfirmed the attention that the Alliance pays to the security of the Black Sea region and conveyed that the allied support for Romania will continue strongly.

Minister Oana Toiu underlined the strategic, energy-related and economic importance of the Black Sea for Romania and for Europe, presenting also the strengthened regional cooperation with Bulgaria and Turkey to protect this space. Oana Toiu also emphasized the need for stronger allied cooperation against hybrid threats.

Last but not least, the NATO seminar that will be organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, together with NATO, in October, in Bucharest, was discussed.

'Romania is deeply committed to developing the strongest defensive alliance in the world and the more than 20 years since we have been NATO members have sedimented a strong trust of citizens in the North Atlantic alliance, and this can withstand any political storms. We need NATO for our security and the other allies know that they can rely on us in turn. The alliance is now facing multiple crises, the pressure of the relationship between allies and the need for innovation and increased coordination, and Romania has a key role in the coordination necessary for the evolution of the alliance, as host, in a week, of the B9 summit in Bucharest and of the NATO seminar, which we are hosting in the fall, on hybrid threats', declared the Minister of Foreign Affairs, according to the said press release.

The Military Committee is NATO's main military forum and brings together representatives of the member states' armies, having an advisory role for the Alliance's political decisions. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Karina Olteanu; EN - writing by: Bogdan Gabaroi)